The Exception 2015 Sauvignon Blanc

Region

Sharing latitudinal pedigree with Gisborne in New Zealand; Sonoma and Napa Valleys in the USA; Mendoza in Argentina; Sicily in Italy and Jerez in Spain, Victoria is the southern-most and coolest State of mainland Australia, famed for its diverse wine regions and cool climate. Home to Fowles Wine vineyards and winery, the Strathbogie Ranges is characterised by massive granite boulders – the very boulders that have given rise, over millions of years, to the sandy loam soils in which our vines grow. This is a harsh Australian landscape with soil that is nutrient poor and retains very little water – difficult for farmers to grow livestock, but a wonderful landscape for grape growers seeking to grow fruit with great intensity. Couple these attributes with the cool climate, gentle aspect and glorious summer sunshine and the Strathbogie Ranges is an ideal region for growing grapes and making wine. The mean January temperature is 19.15°C and the average annual rainfall in our family vineyards is 700 mm (28 inches). Harvest in the Strathbogie Ranges generally occurs from late February through to early May.

Winemaking

The fruit for this wine was harvested at night on the 22nd of April 2015, with a yield of around six and a half tonnes per hectare. The fruit was crushed and the juice from the raisined berries was held on skins for six hours to liberate the sugar and extract the intense fruit flavours from the pulp closest to the skin. We fermented this wine at 12˚C in stainless steel tanks to preserve the primary fruit flavour and chose a yeast strain called ES181 because of its ability to promote the expression of rich, fruity aromas. This wine was matured for nine months in 100% new French oak puncheons (500 litres) that were sourced from four different coopers. The puncheons themselves also vary in origin, which helps build the layers of complexity in the wine. Special Comments: The vintage of 2015 was warm and dry, creating the perfect conditions to craft late harvest wines. Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon are the grapes used in Sauterne, and it is worth noting that in Sauternes (the French region renowned for some of finest dessert wines on earth), this level of oak maturation is only reserved for the best vintages and the best dessert wines. As the temperature peaked, the sugars in the Sauvignon Blanc began to climb so high that the number of wasps circling parts of the vineyard made it no longer safe to sample some of the fruit. This gave our Chief Winemaker, Victor Nash, a rather crazy idea. After a long conversation with our Senior winemaker, Lindsay Brown, and our Vineyard Manager, Rick Milland, they decided to pick the fruit as it reached a whopping 18 Baumé - an unusual proposition for Sauvignon Blanc grown in Australia, which is normally harvested at 10-12 Baumé for table wine. Initially the juice was surprisingly grassy, but as the ferment progressed, luscious flavours of tropical fruit emerged and an exceptional wine developed. Our winemakers then took further inspiration from our friends in France, and gave our lovely, honeyed wine a luxury oak treatment, using 100% new French oak, in the same manner that the great vintages of Sauterne receive. The wine then spent nine months resting in new French oak barrels, before blending and bottling.

Wine Analysis

Alc 10.5%
R/S 140 g/L
T/A 7.6 g/L
PH 3.24

Colour

Deep straw  with tinges of green.

Nose

Fragrant ripe tropical fruit and citrus blossom play with notes of rich, soft oak. 

Palate

A late harvest Sauvignon Blanc with plush apricot and paw paw, good length and a complex, yet clean finish.

Peak Drinking

Enjoy now or cellar for up to ten years